Vicious Minds: Part 3 (Children of Vice 6)

“Because if not, you’ll end up killing me here,” she said, lifting her fist back up. “I’ll fight you until you accept or kill me. Do or die, boss.”

That was her game.

She knew she couldn’t win right now. But she also knew Ethan wouldn’t keep punching her. She knew he didn’t want her to be hurt. His reason for not wanting her to come along was because he was trying to protect her. What was the point of protecting her if he beat her to death here?

“You’re fucking ridiculous,” he snapped, moving to get out the ring, but she charged him.

Taking them both to the mat and punching his face over and over again. He took the punches for a moment until he found a way to flip her off him and toss her to the side. Ethan was far too gentle. He could have just punched into her side.

“Do or die,” Calliope repeated as she got off the ground. “I mean that. So, don’t hold back anymore, Ethan, let’s go!”

He stood there…completely fed up and defeated. His shoulders slumped, and almost looked like he was beating himself for getting in the damn ring. They both seemed so ridiculous that I couldn’t but smile.

“Are you laughing at me?” Ethan glared at me.

“Focus on our fight!” Calliope hollered, punching into his back.

“You fucking madwoman! Fine! Fuck! Fine!” he hollered at her. “You fucking win! Deal!”

Grinning, Calliope let go of him and laid on the mat, trying to breathe. “Two days,…it’s over.”

She really was a madwoman. I thought, smirking and moving, leave them alone.

“Hey, teach!”

“What?”

“You’re good for your age,” she said, clearly trying to provoke me.

Rolling my eyes, I pulled open the door. “No, I’m just good.”

She laughed, and for some strange, stupid reason, I smiled.

CALLIOPE

I was the first one up in the morning, and while I wanted to work out, I tried to save my energy. Instead, I focused on making breakfast and the plan of attack, creating the map on the computer with a profile for each other.

“What smells so good?” Liam came in, glancing around the kitchen. His green eyes went wide as he looked over the bacon slices, sausages, fried eggs, baked beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, and hash browns. He looked back at me when I handed him a plate. “You made a full Irish breakfast?”

“Well, I’m missing black pudding, but it’s close, right?”

“It’s a bit more than close.” He chuckled, grabbing one of the sausages and threw it into his mouth. “And it’s good.”

“Of course, it’s good. I made it.”

He happily stacked his plate. “Cocky. But Mel told me that. Celebrating Ethan’s loss yesterday?”

“Celebrating my victory,” I said, handing him the orange juice, which he happily drank before taking some of the bread for his eggs. “Do you know why I learned to cook?”

“Hmm?” he asked as he took another bite of the bacon.

“Because no matter how much a man may distrust a woman, if she puts a plate of food in front of him, he forgets everything but his hunger. So, it’s the perfect method of murder.”

He paused, looking to me.

“She’s being honest, but she didn’t do anything to the food,” Ethan said when he came out.

I laughed, taking a piece of bacon to eat. Liam’s face fell. “But she fucking killed my joy in eating it!”